With reference to FIG. 10, in standard cover shooter controls, a player has three main inputs/touch regions for getting in/out of cover and shooting. First, there is a view touch region 1002 to adjust the camera view (pitch and/or yaw) of the action scene 1001. Typically, as illustrated in FIG. 10, this view touch region is not visible to the user. Second, there is a fire button 1004. If the virtual character 1006 is in a covered state as illustrated in FIG. 10, pressing the fire button 1004 causes the virtual character 1006 to come out of the covered state into a weapon readied state, as illustrated in FIG. 11, and to fire. If the virtual character 1006 is in the weapon readied state, as illustrated in FIG. 11, pressing the fire button 1004 causes the virtual character 1006 to fire their weapon. Third, there is a cover button 1008. If the virtual character 1008 is in the covered state, for instance, as illustrated in FIG. 10, pressing the cover button 1008 either does nothing or gets the virtual character out of the covered state and into the weapon readied state, depending on the game implementation. If the virtual character 1008 is in the weapon readied state, as illustrated in FIG. 11, pressing the cover button 1008 gets the virtual character 1008 into the covered state, as illustrated in FIG. 10. Thus, the cover button 1006 is used to toggle the virtual character 1006 into and out of the covered state.
The covered state is useful for weapon reloading and to prevent getting damaged from adverse characters. The weapon readies state is useful for immediately firing a weapon at enemy characters, upon pressing of the fire button. However, the extra layer of input imposed by the cover button illustrated, for example, in FIGS. 10 and 11, can be unsatisfactory for video game players. Players are required to at all times remember the virtual character state (covered state or weapon readied state), particularly when it is time to reload a weapon or to wait for new adverse characters to appear in a scene. Thus, when the user has completed firing, they must remember to press the cover button 1004 to return to the covered stated. Further, in some game implementations, before they can start firing, if they are in the covered state, they must first press the cover button 1008 to get their virtual character out of the covered state and into the weapon readied state before they can start firing. Often players forget about the cover button when their virtual character is in the exposed weapon readied stated, leading their virtual character to be needlessly exposed to potential attach by adverse characters. Further, in some games where the fire button is not sufficient to get users out of the covered state, players forget about the cover button when their virtual character is in the covered stated, leading to delay in getting their virtual character to be in the weapon readied state and firing their weapon.
Moreover, the cover button is further disadvantageous because it can be overwhelming for new players, especially when there is a multitude of other buttons on the screen. For instance, in the typical prior art game illustrated in FIGS. 10 and 11, there is a scope button 1010. When the user toggles on the scope 1010, a close up view of the base defendants is provided. As another example, in the prior art game illustrated in FIGS. 10 and 11, there is a special items selection button 1012. When the user presses the special items selection button 1012, as illustrated in FIG. 11, the user is able to select special items (e.g., daggers, grenades, etc.) for use in the game. As still another example, in the prior art game illustrated in FIGS. 10 and 11, there is a pause button 1014. When the user presses the pause button 1014, the user is able to pause the game. In still other games, there are buttons for selecting a new weapon from the user's profile, button for weapon reloading, and/or buttons for character heal, to name a few non-limiting examples.
Given the above background, what is needed in the art is a new genre of video games that provide improved release controls for getting virtual characters to fire weapons and to take cover.